What do Teachers of the Year say about their jobs?
Chesterfield County Public Schools asked its Teachers of the Year, “What do you enjoy most about your job?” Here are a few of their responses:
Melanie Brown
Melanie Brown of Hening Elementary: “I believe I am doing what I was born to do, and I am making a difference. I care about my students unconditionally, and the relationships I establish with my students I carry close to my heart.”
Karen Taylor of Jacobs Road Elementary: “My students need someone to find out what they can do, instead of what they can’t do. Although I think I am challenging my students to be their best, they are the ones challenging me to be my best.”
Crystal Richardson of Ecoff Elementary: “I love seeing how excited my students get about learning, and I love the impact I have on their lives! … A quote that I try to live by each day as an educator is this one from Lady Bird Johnson: ‘Children are likely to live up to what you believe of them.’”
Crystal Richardson
Matt Porter of Tomahawk Creek Middle: “Being a teacher allows me to experience the joy that students display when they not only succeed academically but also personally. There is tremendous enjoyment in watching a student master a new concept or overcome a personal challenge.”
Brianne Gunn of Falling Creek Middle (Chesterfield’s Middle School Teacher of the Year): “I love listening to my students ask questions that reveal their true inquisitive nature and desire to understand our world. I find great joy in seeing them develop connections and relationships within the community. … I revel in their discoveries of personal growth.”
Brianne Gunn
Christopher Averill of Cosby High (Virginia’s Region 1 Teacher of the Year and Chesterfield’s Teacher of the Year): “The energy that emanates from the young adults inspires me daily.”
Chesterfield County Public Schools honored its 2016 Teachers of the Year from elementary, middle and high schools at a Gold Star Gala sponsored by the Chesterfield Education Foundation on Oct. 29.
Each spring, every Chesterfield County school selects a Teacher of the Year for the next school year. Chesterfield County Public Schools selects from those honorees an Elementary School Teacher of the Year, a Middle School Teacher of the Year and a High School Teacher of the Year, then chooses a county-wide Teacher of the Year from those honorees:
Cosby High history teacher Christopher Averill is Chesterfield’s Teacher of the Year, as well as Chesterfield’s High School Teacher of the Year. Also, the Virginia Department of Education in mid-September selected Averill as Virginia’s Region 1 Teacher of the Year. He began his career as a history teacher in 1989 at Clover Hill High; since 2006 he has taught history and served as the social studies department chair at Cosby High. Averill earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from James Madison University.
Brianne Gunn is Chesterfield’s Middle School Teacher of the Year. She teaches sixth-grade science at Falling Creek Middle. Gunn joined Chesterfield County Public Schools in 2011 in her current position. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Also, Chesterfield County Public Schools annually recognizes outstanding teachers who are just beginning their careers. Winners of the Beginning Teacher of the Year Awards are:
- Katelyn Bell of Alberta Smith Elementary
- Jon Ferguson of Providence Middle
- Pamela Hooper of Bird High
Here are the 2016 Teachers of the Year from Chesterfield County Public Schools:
Elementary schools
Bellwood — Brandi Guess
Bensley — Caitlin Reynal
Beulah — Danielle Luce
Bon Air — Katherine Gholson
Chalkley — Nancy Graham
Marguerite Christian — La-Kisha Webb
Clover Hill — Kristel French
Crenshaw — Shelley Neal
Crestwood — Nora Tetllow
Curtis — Sandra Koch
Davis — Amy Zajick
Ecoff — Crystal Richardson
Enon — Lauren Merlo
Ettrick — Maria MacLaughlin
Evergreen — Beth Sawyer
Falling Creek — Ramona Carper
Gates — Sheila Dunn
Gordon — Lenora Dean
Grange Hall — Shelley Burns
Greenfield — Mandy Gray
Harrowgate — Jennifer Deckert
Hening — Melanie Brown
Hopkins — Elisabeth Burba
Jacobs Road — Karen Taylor
Matoaca — Jacqueline Ferguson
Providence — Laura Ipock
Reams Road — Katie Bailey
Salem Church — Deirdre Mercado
Elizabeth Scott — Cindy Smith
Alberta Smith — Mary Kuzemchak
Spring Run — Ian Pifer
Swift Creek — Diane Connell
Watkins — Beth Losego
Bettie Weaver — Teresa Frick
Wells — Dana Loy-Anderson
Winterpock — Beth Harrell
Woolridge — Stephanie Cochrane
Middle schools
Bailey Bridge — Deborah Larkin
Carver — Anna Epps
Elizabeth Davis — Karen Johnson
Falling Creek — Brianne Gunn
Manchester — Susan Headley
Midlothian — Mandy Chilcote
Providence — Michelle Meyer-Gray
Robious — Janet Garland
Salem Church — Heather Murfee
Swift Creek — Christopher Calfee
Tomahawk Creek — Matt Porter
High schools
Bird — Helmut Thielsch
Carver College and Career Academy — Lydie Alapini-Sakponou
Career and Technical Center @ Courthouse — David Holicky
Career and Technical Center @ Hull — Sarah Jurewicz
Clover Hill — Heather Curran
Cosby — Christopher Averill
Thomas Dale — Richard Anthony
James River — Kelly Bisogno
Juvenile Detention Center — Shirl Comer
Manchester — Cary Nothnagel
Matoaca — Randall Rhyne
Meadowbrook — Alicen Brown
Midlothian — Margaret Hendricks
Monacan — Monica Van Arsdale
New teachers
Beginning Teacher of the Year Awards recognize the accomplishments of brand-new educators.
Elementary School Beginning Teacher of the Year — Katelyn Bell of Alberta Smith Elementary
Middle School Beginning Teacher of the Year — Jon Ferguson of Providence Middle
High School Beginning Teacher of the Year — Pamela Hooper of Bird High
